'The Hunters' (1956)
"[I]f you want to set aside such caricatures of men at modern war, if you wish to know that breed of man our times have developed . . . curl up for a flight with 'The Hunters' . . . Mr. Salter has produced what his publishers call an 'extraordinary novel.' Those are big words. Let's use . . . 'mighty fine.'"

'A Sport and a Pastime' (1967)
". . . a tour de force in erotic realism, a romantic cliff-hanger, an opaline vision of Americans in France. Fiction survives through minor novels like this one."

'Light Years' (1975)
". . . it is the primitive appeal of destinies unfolding in time that carries the reader along, the simple-minded quest for what comes next. This appeal must be admitted and perhaps honored -- but with the recognition that it cannot go very far to redeem an overwritten, chi-chi, and rather silly novel."

'Solo Faces' (1979)
". . . on the whole a beautifully fashioned and satisfying novel. The story it tells is not so much about mountain climbing as of a man obsessed with the sport."

'Dusk: And Other Stories' (1988)
"This is fine writing, these are first-rate stories, and James Salter is an author worth more attention than he has received so far."

'Burning the Days: Recollection' (1997)
". . . a book of memorable stories . . . Salter's life has been striking in the diversity of its parts . . . not a novel, but it is written as nearly like one as a memoir could be."

ARTICLES BY JAMES SALTER:

Homage to a Legend Called Aspen(1981)
"Skiing in Colorado is exceptional because of the weather, the plentiful snow, and because of the scale of it all, the blue mountains stretching out without number, the immense sky."

In Austria, the Definitive Downhill (1982)
"The Hahnenkamm is one of the oldest races, and indisputably the toughest. Characterized by extreme steepness at the start, abrupt changes of terrain and difficult turns, it is a course that is respected and feared."

Revisiting Ancient Trier (1985)
"I had been in a fighter squadron near here . . . What I had expected was a return to a youthful past despite the warnings of so many stories and books, and I was disappointed to find it gone."

Rediscovering Japanese Life at a Bike's Pace (1988)
"Although I had brought along John Toland's book 'The Rising Sun' . . . I knew I would not be divining the real nature of the Japanese people merely from descriptions of World War II campaigns, however well written . . . Gradually, I confirmed my impression of the Japanese as stoic and hard working."

Once Upon a Time, Literature. Now What? (1988)
As part of the Writers on Writing series, Salter reflects on language in an age of popular culture. "Literature is not dead," Salter writes, "but it has lost its eminence."

INTERVIEWS WITH JAMES SALTER:

A Few Well-Chosen Words(1990)
In an interview Adam Begley, James Salter, once called the "most underrated underrated writer," said he "hasn't yet achieved much . . . My ideal is a book that is perfect on every page, that gives you tremendous aesthetic joy on every page. I suppose I am trying to write such a book."